Thanks to John Winn for his summary of events at Lord's where Durham pulled off an amazing win and are still very much in the promotion race to Division one with two games to go. As John suggests next week's game at Northampton will be vital and will be followed by a home match against Glamorgan to end the season at Riverside.
No cricket season can be complete without a visit to Lord's and it was a pleasure to be there for the entire game which finished in the early afternoon of the third day. Suffice to say that the Durham players were still celebrating in the Tavern pub next to the ground at 6 p.m. when we called in for our evening meal.
Middlesex won the toss and put Durham in to bat possibly hoping that their new signing for the remainder of the season (a common trend unfortunately) West Indian Test bowler Miguel Cummings would get among the wickets. While he bowled quite tidily, he never really troubled the Durham batsmen, who got off to the best of starts with a fifty opening partnership between Lees and Cameron Steel. The fall of Lees' wicket, lbw to Harris, brought in Angus Robson the younger brother of Middlesex opener Sam Robson, playing only his second game for the visitors.
Things then began to turn back Middlesex's way as Cameron Steel, who had looked in good form, played on to Finn and then Cummings claimed his only wicket of the innings having Robson caught at slip without scoring. Gareth Harte was out to the last ball before lunch and it was left to the Australian Handscomb to improve the position with a useful fifty before being bowled by Tim Murtagh. Scott Steel, playing his first championship game, was lbw to Murtagh for only two and the tail then subsided rapidly to the pace of Steven Finn who finished with 4-41. Durham 147 all out.
First round to Middlesex you might say, but Durham soon bounced back with an early wicket, this time Carse taking over Rushworth's mantle, with the wicket of Gubbins before a run was scored. Rimmington soon got in on the act when coming on as first change and bowling Eskinazi for 24 and then it was Rushworth's turn having Robson caught behind and then Holden, after his big century for the seconds last week, caught by Harte at square leg. Middlesex in disarray at 59-4.
Worse was to follow for the home side in the final session when Ben Raine got to work from the Nursery End, not distracted by the demolition work going on behind him, with work having already started on the re-building of the Compton and Edrich stands. In just eleven balls Raine took three wickets, those of Scott, Simpson and skipper Malan. When bad light stopped play despite the floodlights being on Middlesex were left struggling on 87-7.
On day two the Middlesex tailenders flung the bat and picked up a few useful runs before Ben Raine added to his tally with two more wickets to end with magnificent figures of 12-5-26-5. Rushworth had 3-46 and Middlesex were all out for 143, just four runs behind Durham. The visitors opening pair again added a 50 partnership before the bowlers began to hit back again. However it was a sad misjudgement by Alex Lees, which led to his downfall. Setting off for a single, hesitating, then setting off again saw him run out by yards when Steel sent him back.
Cameron Steel made another useful contribution of 39, but top scorer in the second innings was Angus Robson, whose resolute batting for nearly four hours in compiling the top score of the match so far turned the game slightly back Durham's way. He was helped by debutant Scott Steel whose innings of 39, including six fours, proved equally valuable. There was little contribution from the rest but a total of 191 all out meant that Middlesex had to make the highest score of this bowler dominated game to win. They got off to a confident start when Gubbins hit the first two balls from Rushworth for four and ended the day on 21-0.
The warm, cloudy weather continued on day three but cleared to fine sunshine by lunchtime. Middlesex had reached 31-0 before Gubbins was held at slip by Lees off Carse, who was generating pace as he did against Leicestershire in the last home match. Two of the main men, Eskinazi and Malan then went cheaply to Rushworth and Raine and Durham had the upper hand again on 45-3. The elder Robson, Sam, held the innings together for two and a half hours and the turning point came just four balls after the lunch interval when Rushworth got him to edge to Eckersley behind the stumps. Robson became the highest scorer of the game beating his brother by just one run.
Perhaps time for a word of praise to Ned Eckersley, as undemonstrative as skipper as he is behind the stumps. His move from Leicestershire has certainly paid off and his track record since taking over from Cameron Bancroft is exceptional. Now was the hour (or even less) for the man of the match to make his mark. Brydon Carse is a 24 year old South African who missed the whole of last season with a serious knee injury, but has proved his worth as a quick bowler in recent games.
In the afternoon sunshine he charged in from the pavilion end with the Middlesex score on 124-5 still requiring 72 more runs for victory. Carse had Scott caught behind before bowling Harris two balls later and it was suddenly 124-7. The travelling Durham support could hardly contain themselves when first Cummings and then the ever reliable Simpson were both clean bowled by Carse to make the score 139-9. A flurry of fours from the last pair took the score onto 151 before Carse finished
things off by bowling Murtagh to give Durham victory by 44 runs.
What an amazing finish with Carse beating his previous best bowling performance, against Leicestershire recently, with figures of 9.4 - 2 - 26 - 6. He led the Durham players from the field to tremendous applause from all present. No doubt the strains of 'The Blaydon Races' together with traditional bat banging on the floor was in full spate in double quick time. So an exciting finale to the county championship promotion race in prospect over the next two weeks.
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